AP Language
Rhetorical Analysis of Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience”
Directions: Read “Civil Disobedience.” As you read, underline examples of Thoreau using rhetorical devices and identify and explain the devices via annotation. Answer questions 1-4 to prepare for further work with a small group. The group will work together on questions 5 through 8. Be ready to explain your answers to the whole class. Even when you’re working as a group you should be writing the answers.
1. Based on your reading of “Civil Disobedience,” what kind of person does Henry David Thoreau seem to be? How would you characterize his state of mind and emotion as he composed this essay? Cite specific examples from the text to support your claims about Thoreau’s voice and persona.
2. What does Thoreau do in “Civil Disobedience” to urge his readers to believe in him as a trustworthy, credible person? Point out specific passages where you felt Thoreau was (or was not) particularly believable (this gets at the ethos of the piece).
3. One device a writer can use to get a point across is metaphor. Thoreau uses metaphor extensively in “Civil Disobedience.” Notice, for example, what he compares machinery to or how he uses gaming metaphorically. Select two metaphors and explain, citing specific examples from the text, how they help Thoreau’s central idea become more vivid for his readers.
4. How do you think Thoreau wanted his readers to react to the essay? What did he want them to feel? think? believe? do? How do you know? Identify specific places in the essay that help you determine Thoreau’s purpose.
5. Using the questions below, divide the essay into functional parts (a part of text classified according to its function—for example, introduction, example, or counterargument). Label the parts and be prepared to support your answers.
a. Is there some section that clearly lets the reader know what subject the composition is about and what the writer’s purpose is? If so, where does this section begin and end? In this section, can you find an answer to the central question that the text has been written in response to, or can you find an indication of the text’s central argument?
b. Is there a part that explains any background information that the reader needs to know in order to be able to understand the answer to the central question or argument that the composition offers? If so, where does this section begin and end?
c. Is there some sentence or paragraph that focuses the reader’s attention on some particular issues, aspect, or theme that the paper examines as opposed to others that it could examine?
d. Is there some section that purposefully sets out material in support of the paper’s answer to the central question of its argument? If so, where does this section begin and end?
e. Is there a part that examines possible objections to the answer, argument, or supporting material? If so, where does this section begin and end?
f. Is there a sentence or section where the writer specifically answers the “So what?” question? In other words, is there a section where the writer hints at what he or she hopes readers will think and do on the basis of what they have read in the text?
6. Using a functional part where Thoreau is supporting his argument, see how many of the following rhetorical methods you can identify. Cite the paragraph number and a few identifying phrases or sentences of specific text to identify the method:
a. Relating anecdotes
b. Describing scenes and evoking sensory images
c. Defining terms and concepts
d. Dividing the whole into parts
e. Classifying the parts according to some principle or order
f. Providing cause-and-effect reasoning
7. Select one specific paragraph that you believe represents the most interesting, most vivid passage in “Civil Disobedience.” Describe as much of the style of that passage as you can. For every stylistic feature you notice, explain what you see as its effect on 1) the appeal of the essay, 2) the credibility of Thoreau, or 3) the emotional or persuasive power of the piece.
8. Point out some ways you see Thoreau tapping into the “cultural memory” of his readers. (Cultural memory in modern rhetoric refers to the writer-reader connection. It has to do with how much knowledge, information, and data a writer has about his audience and their culture. A simple way of talking about this is to ask: what does a writer know about is readers and their lives, and how does he or she use it to further his writing purpose?). To what does the text refer or allude with the expectation that readers will know the reference or allusion? Are these references and allusions likely to appeal to and affect readers today in the same way they did when Thoreau used them?